There is a large, poorly satisfied global need for readily available, adequate tasting, safe, affordable and convenient drinking water. The ability to serve this global need is limited by many factors, one being the economics of the centralized bottling model. Traditionally, less affluent consumers are not well served by branded water as price increases with respect to water quality and trustworthiness. Distributed purification alternatives, such as chemical treatment and carbon filtration, have limited impact on water safety and have significant limitations for consumers, retailers, bottlers, and brand owners.
Water kiosks, i.e., locations, providing containers of water which are typically filled at an off-site location and transported to the kiosk, are prevalent in cities with poor municipal water supplies, and are an inefficient and expensive solution to providing safe drinking water to the masses. Kiosks typically sell water by the jug, and the cost of transport, bottling, and distribution are all passed to the consumer. Environmentally, transport of kiosk-related water jugs increases pollution and traffic congestion.
Additionally, the volume of water capable of being stored at a kiosk in jug-form is finite. In locations such as Mexico City, for example, reducing the number of jugs required to adequately meet the demand for purified water may help resolve the serious logistical problems of the water kiosk. Accordingly, there is a need for an efficient, more reliable, and less expensive means of distributing safe and adequate tasting drinking water.